Lee Mack Ritenour (pronounced RIT-now-er; born January 11, 1952) is an American musician who plays jazz and jazz fusion guitar. He has been performing and recording music since the late 1960s.

Biography

Ritenour was born on January 11, 1952, in Los Angeles, California. He began playing the guitar at the age of eight and decided to pursue a career in music when he was 12 years old. At 16, he participated in his first recording session with the Mamas & the Papas. He enjoyed playing jazz and was inspired by guitarist Wes Montgomery. When he was 17, he worked with Lena Horne and Tony Bennett. He studied classical guitar at the University of Southern California. In the mid-to-late 1970s, Ritenour bought a 1958 Fender Stratocaster, which became one of his main guitars for recording. Between the early 1980s and 1987, the guitar was changed in several ways. These changes included adding a 3-ply pickguard, an Alembic Strat-o-blaster preamp, a string tree, a Floyd Rose tremolo with a locking nut, and EMG S pickups.

1976–1988

Ritenour's solo music career started with the album First Course in 1976, followed by Captain Fingers in 1977 and The Captain's Journey in 1978. In 1979, he helped improve a guitar part on the Pink Floyd song "Run Like Hell" from the album The Wall. He also played rhythm guitar without being credited on the song "One of My Turns." As the 1980s began, Ritenour added more pop music elements to his work. His album Rit (1981) was his only album to chart in Australia, reaching number 98. The song "Is It You," featuring vocals by Eric Tagg, reached number 15 on the Billboard pop chart and number 27 on the Soul chart. It also reached number 15 on the Hot Adult Contemporary chart. He continued with pop-focused music on Rit/2 (1982) and Banded Together (1984). In 1983, he released a Direct-Disk instrumental album called On the Line. He also played rhythm guitar on Tom Browne's album Funkin' for Jamaica. He recorded Harlequin (1985) with Dave Grusin and vocals by Ivan Lins. His next album, Earth Run, was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Jazz Fusion Performance. The album's title track was also nominated for Best Instrumental Composition. Portrait (GRP, 1987) included guest performances by the Yellowjackets, Djavan, and Kenny G. In 1988, Ritenour focused on Brazilian music on the album Festival, where he played nylon-string guitar. He changed direction with the straight-ahead jazz album Stolen Moments, recorded with saxophonist Ernie Watts, pianist Alan Broadbent, bassist John Patitucci, and drummer Harvey Mason. That same year, he composed the theme song for the Canadian TV series Ramona.

1990–present

In 1991, Ritenour and keyboardist Bob James started the group Fourplay. He left the group in 1997 and was replaced by Larry Carlton. In 2005, he released a collection of his best work called Overtime. The next year, he released an album named Smoke n' Mirrors, which included the first appearance of his thirteen-year-old son, Wesley, playing drums.

In 2010, Ritenour celebrated fifty years as a guitarist by releasing an album titled 6 String Theory, which refers to six different musical styles explored using the guitar.

Ritenour has served as a judge for the Independent Music Awards.

In 2018, Ritenour lost his home and personal recording studio in Malibu, California, due to the Woolsey Fire.

Lead vocalists

Lee Ritenour's first few solo albums had only instrumental music. Starting with Captain Fingers (1977), Ritenour included vocalists on many songs:

• Djavan
• Bill Champlin
• Eric Tagg
• Patti Austin
• Ivan Lins
• Phil Perry
• João Bosco
• Kate Markowitz
• Maxi Priest
• Lisa Fischer
• Michael McDonald

Awards

Ritenour has won one Grammy award out of sixteen nominations.

• Album of the Year, Jazziz magazine (2010) – 6 String Theory.
• Best International Instrumentalist, Echo Jazz Award (2011).

Discography

• Fourplay (Warner Bros., 1991)
• Between the Sheets (Warner Bros., 1993)
• Elixir (Warner Bros., 1995)
• Best of Fourplay (Warner Bros., 1997)

• Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) (Denon, 1988)
• Norwegian Wood, Vol. 2 (Denon, 1994)

GRP All-Star Big Band
• GRP All-Star Big Band (GRP, 1992)

• 1977 – "Strawberry Letter 23" from the album Right On Time by Brothers Johnson
• 1987 – Joyride, track 6: "Midi Citi" (En Pointe)
• 1985 – American Flyers (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) with Greg Mathieson (GRP)

Collaborations with:
• Carole Bayer Sager
• The Brothers Johnson
• Melissa Manchester
• Barbra Streisand